The Man in the Shadows
by Dragneel777
Summary: After another failed attempt to get a Philosopher's stone Ed returns to East city- not realizing the man that seems to be watching his every move, and may be after his very life.
1. Chapter 1

**Heehee! Me and my evil mind are back to work!**

 **Feel free to review, but no flames plz!**

 **I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist!**

 **All rights go to Hiromu Arakawa!**

 **...FMA...**

The young boy scowled as they walked into the town- it, like the rest of the non military friendly towns the brothers entered was silent- every person they walked by glaring at the two of them. Despite the towns people having no idea who the brothers actually were.

All that counted was how odd the pair of brothers looked, the shorter one with golden hair in a braid and golden eyes was wearing a red coat with gloves- despite it being hot out.

The taller one was even odder, he was wearing a full suit of armor and was walking around as if it was nothing, "Are you alright Brother?" A child's voice came from the armor- noticing his brother's mood.

"I hate deserts." The blonde haired boy growled.

"Hey!" One of the townspeople spoke up, "What are the two of you doing here?"

The boy in the red coat scratched his head and sighed, "Guess this isn't a people friendly town." Then he stepped forward- without a worry in the world, "Look we're here to talk to an Alchemist who lives in this town- we hear that he has some information that can help us."

"And what do you want with Shaliz?" A booming voice demanded, the two boys looked back at a man that loomed even taller then Alphonse.

The blonde haired boy still didn't look worried, "If you were just listening then you heard ma say-"

"I know what you just said stranger." The man growled, "What I want to know is what two brats want with Shaliz- he doesn't just invite strangers in."

"We- uh-" Alphonce looked back at his brother for help.

"He's got something that we've been looking for." Ed spoke up- not really the help Alphonse was looking for- "We need to talk to him about it."

"You mean you want to steal it!"

"Now now," The blonde haired boy smirked, "If we were going to steal it do you really think I'd be wasting my time here with you?"

The man lunged, "Why you-"

The blonde boy smirked, and clapped his hands together, "Too slow!" He yelled and pressed his hands to the ground and after a moment of blue electricity he created a wall between the two of them- hearing the satisfying _thunk!_ As the man slammed into the wall.

Alphonse sighed, "We're not trying to pick a fight brother-"

The older brother turned, "What- he started it!" He yelled causing Alphonse to sigh once more and wonder how the blonde Alchemist was the older brother-

The wall in front of the blonde Alchemist shattered and fell as the huge man stood up- looking mildly surprised, "You're an Alchemist?"

The boy held up his fist, "Try that again and you might just find out." He said then clapped his hands together and touched his right arm, a metal blade being created from his arm- ripping his glove to shreds once again.

"You don't need a transmutation circle to transmute-" The man whispered- then saw the familiar shine on his automail arm. "Wait a sec- and do you have and automail arm?"

The boy smirked and took off his red coat- showing the automail arm that went all the way to his shoulder, "An automail arm-" the man took a step back, "A blonde haired Alchemist with an automail right arm- you're the State Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist- Edward Elric!"

Ed smirked, "Well looks like I'm even well know all the way out here."

"Wait- then that means that the Fullmetal Alchemist is a runt?" Somebody in the crowd asked.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING A MICRO-SIZED RUNT SO SMALL HE CAN'T GO INTO THE DESERT BECAUSE YOU COULDN'T EVEN SEE HIM FROM THE GRAINS OF SAND AROUND HIM AND YOU MIGHT ACCIDENTALLY STEP ON HIM 'CAUSE YOU CAN'T SEE HIM!" Ed roared and clapped his hands- slamming them into the ground and deforming that part of the town with anything he could think of in his rage fit.

People were thrown everywhere wailing, "We didn't say any of that!"

Alphonse sighed at his brother as he smouldered in anger, _well at least the area was cleared..._

...FMA...

The hallway was silent except the clicking of their shoes as they walked, the blonde sniper sighed while looking over at her commanding officer, "Sir-"

The black haired Colonel peeked back at his Lieutenant, "What is it Lieutenant?"

"Where you sent those two boys-" She looked over, "You are aware that the town is very anti-military?"

"Along with most of this country- for what those boys are looking for they can't just search in the friendly towns. They are going to have to search everywhere."

"Sir- he is merely a child."

"He chose to give away his childhood when he joined the military." The Colonel stated- just as he did every time- even if he felt a little stab in his heart.

Riza Hawkeye sighed and nodded, "Yes sir."

Colonel Roy Mustang stared outside with his charcoal eyes, "It's a nice day out wouldn't you say Luteniate?"

"Yes sir."

...FMA...

Ed clapped his hands and created doors that they could get through- since the ones they were planning to go through had been locked on the outside, "This is getting a little old." He said as bullets ricocheted off of Al's armor.

"Well if you didn't pick so many fights maybe this wouldn't happen brother." Al said.

Ed's antenna stood up straight as he stick his nose in the air, "Yeah- well... I. Will you just shut up and keep moving?" He snapped, not being able to come up with anything better then that.

Behind them the brothers could hear Shaliz yelling, "Get those two! They can tell my plans to the state.

Ed sighed and peeked back, "It's Liore all over again huh?" He growled and peeked back, "Except he doesn't even have the damn thing- fake or real-" He stopped running and turned- the anger on his face quite evident.

Shaliz stopped, "What do you think you can do can do boy?"

Ed smirked, "A whole lot more then you can do Doc." Then he clapped his hand together and dropped to his knees, touching the floor.

Then before the Doctor could react pillars shot out of the floor, walls, and ceiling- trapping them. Ed stood up, "Don't worry- I'll definitely make sure to tell the State what you're trying to pull buddy."

...FMA...

Due to the ruckus the brothers had caused they were forced to walk to the next town and catch a train to East City.

Ed collapsed on the bench- his automail was burning him, literally. "Are you okay brother?" Al asked worryingly.

"Too damn hot- can you stand a little over to the left a bit Al?" Ed asked and Al moved so his shadow loomed over his older brother, and Ed sighed in relief.

Al giggled, "Glad I can help." He peeked over his shoulder- careful not to move his body, "The train to East City should be here in about ten minutes."

"Joy." Ed said sarcastically.

"At least it should be cooler in the train."

"Yay!" Ed said- less sarcastic this time and Al snickered at his older brother's immaturity. Not noticing the man standing in the background watching the two of them.

After a bit they heard the train whistle in the distance- Ed immediately sat up and looked at the approaching train, that's when he noticed the man.

He peeked over- at first thinking that it was just another guy waiting for the train- then he noticed how the man was watching him. Ed stood up and grabbed his luggage, as soon as the train pulled up Ed turned to Al, "Let's go Al." He said and they boarded, Ed taking one last peek back at the strange man- swearing that he could see a smile on the man's face.

...FMA...

The ride back to East City was long. There wasn't a lot of people on the train- a small family. Ed listened to the boy laughing and talking with his mother.

He frowned- thinking back on when he used to speak with his own mother like that, he looked over at his brother- who was also listening to the conversation silently. He couldn't see the emotion through the armor- he tapped his brother's shell gaining his attention and offered his younger brother a small smile.

Al nodded in response.

The brothers had managed to find a seat next to the door so they could get off quickly before the rush got on.

Ed sighed and laid on the bench- taking up the whole thing. Al was sitting across from him, "Are you going to try and get some sleep brother?"

I'm gonna try." Ed mumbled and yawned, "I don't have enough energy to put up with the Colonel-bastard right now." Then he closed his eyes- still hearing the little boy speaking with his mother he fell asleep.

...FMA...

He was back in that room- Al was gone, he could hear his own voice screaming for his brother, "Al! AL!" He screamed, "ALPHONSE!" He screamed then looked back at his own missing leg, "What have I done?" He cried, "AL!"

"Edward-"

Ed peeked over at the center of the transmutation circle, his mind screaming at him not to- but he never could look away.

The thing reached out towards him- it looked as if it were moving closer- trying to touch him, "What have you done to mommy Edward?" It rasped.

Edwards scream was the last thing he heard.

...FMA...

"Brother?" Al asked as his brother bolted awake, breathing hard and covered in sweat, "Are you alright?"

Ed looked over at his little brother- still with him, in the old armor that happened to be in the room at the time- his little brother who couldn't eat, sleep, or even feel.

And he- his big brother had put him there.

Ed sighed and dropped his head- curling up into his knees and taking deep breathes.

"Nightmare?" Al asked- careful not to push his brother.

After a moment Ed sat up, "I'm alright." He said and looked outside- it was dark, but he recognized the landscape outside, "Where are we?"

"About ten minutes from East City." Al said- letting it drop.

Ed nodded and sat back- staring out the window.

Soon the train pulled into the station, it was pretty late Ed noticed- peeking up at the train station clock.

He sighed and picked up his bag, "Let's get a hotel for tonight- we'll go see the Colonel-bastard in the morning."

"OK brother." Al said and followed his brother- neither of them noticing the man that was watching the earlier standing in the shadows behind them.

The man smiled.

...FMA...

The Fullmetal Alchemist scowled as his superior read over his report, "Anything else? I've been here for four hours." Al said that he had wanted to do something so he would meet him at the hotel- he better not find another stray cat...

"Well if your reports were more readable then you would've been on your merry way a long time ago."

"It's the same as always- we got there looking for a Philosopher's Stone, meet a nutjob instead. Turns out that it's a fake and we come home empty handed again." Fullmetal said and glared out the window Colonel Roy Mustang peeked up at the blonde boy then he looked at the clock, "Well- will you look at the time? I should get going, walk out with me Fullmetal."

Ed immediately turned and snapped, "And what about that damn report!"

"We'll finish translating that chicken scratch tomorrow when you're in a better mood." The Colonel said and smirked.

"Tch!" Ed stood up, glad to be getting out of the office. He peeked over at the Colonel as he picked up his coat and put it on. After a moment the two of them walked out of his office. Ed looked around, "Where's Hawkeye?"

"She's visiting a friend of her's." Mustang said and brushed his black hair back and looked down at the s#&%t Alchemist.

"Which is why you skipping out on your last hour of work." Ed said and scowled, "Lazy ass." He growled.

"Or do you want to finish that report tonight?" The Colonel peeked over at him.

"No way in hell."

Mustang snickered and started walking forward. "Well then shall we go?"

Ed rolled his eyes and crossed his arms- but continued to follow the Colonel down the hallway. Past all the lower ranking soldiers that stared at him as he passed by- Ed was used to it however, he was the youngest State Alchemist in the history of Amestris.

Mustang walked his calm pace- also ignoring all the stares just like he normally did. The two of them walked silently until they were outside then Mustang peeked down at Ed, "Well this a surprise-"

Ed glared back, "What?"

"You didn't blow your top back there." Mustang teased.

"Really?" Ed turned- crossing his arms, "I'm pretty used to all the stares- I'm the youngest State Alchemist, it's bound to happen."

"Really?" Roy smirked, "'Cause I'm pretty sure that they were calling you the Shortest State Alchemist in the history of Amestris."

Ed threw his fist in the air, screaming, "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A RUNT SO SMALL HE CAN EASILY FIT THROUGH THE CRACKS IN EASTERN COMMAND WITHOUT-"

There was a gunshot interrupting Ed's rant and Mustang grabbed him throwing both of them to the side as the glass behind them shattered. Mustang grunted as he hit the ground to the side of the steps and rolled over, using his own body to shield Fullmetal- who was oddly quiet. He hears more gunshots- followed by cover fire.

He tightened his grip on the young Alchemist in his arms and reached for his gloves, they were wet- had he landed in a puddle? It was raining earlier that morning-

He heard the sound of a car taking off, making him peek over his shoulder and seeing a black car speeding down the street away from Eastern Command with soldiers trying to shoot it down.

"Colonel Mustang sir!" A soldier yelled and ran up, "Are you alright sir?"

Mustang sat up, "I'm fine."

The soldier got a weird look in his eyes, "But sir- you're bleeding-"

Mustang looked down at himself and saw that he was covered in blood- but he wasn't injured. His eyes widened in horror as it came to him, "Fullmetal!" He yelled and grabbed the young Alchemist, rolling him over.

He was able to see the bullet wound in his lower ribs, "Shit! It hit him." He cursed then turned to the soldier, "Get a medic quick!" He yelled and the soldier quickly took off.

Mustang shook Ed, "Fullmetal!" Then he put pressure on his wound- trying to stop the bleeding, "Dammit Ed- stay with me!"

Ed remained silent with his eyes closed.

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 **Alright chapter one down!**

 **Feel free to review- but no flames plz!**

 **I'll make sure to update soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright chapter to is up!**

 **This does have Parental Roy/Ed in it because I really do like those- infact I like it when all of Roy's team gets protective over Ed, I mean he is apart of their team even though he is out a lot.**

 **Thanks for reviews from**

 **-Mel Mad**

 **-Gena408**

 **-Attackoneverything**

 **-Aris7**

 **-Zangetsu50**

 **I'm glad you like it!**

 **Feel free to review- but no flames plz!**

 **All rights go to Hiromu Arakawa!**

 **...FMA...**

Roy shuddered as he could feel Ed's blood slipping through his fingers, "Dammit Fullmetal- stay with me!" He yelled and peeked over his shoulder to see if he could spot the medic. None so far, "Come on." He urged, looking back at the young Alchemist.

Where had that come from? A moment ago he and Ed were bickering and teasing like always- and now, he was just trying to keep him alive.

He remembered the car that was driving away- who was that? The Colonel focused on the young bleeding Alchemist.

"Col-onel?" Ed whispered, "I-is that- y-you?"

"It's me Fullmetal- stay with me, you're gonna be alright- just stay with me." The Colonel said quickly- looking to see if the young Alchemist had opened his eyes. His eyes were weakly cracked looking at him.

The Colonel scooted in closer to Ed's limited view, "Fullmetal?"

"M' t- tired-"

"No!" Mustang snapped, "You stay with me! That's an order Fullmetal!" He yelled- keeping pressure on the wound. He peeked over his shoulder.

"D-don't yell-"

Mustang turned back to the kid, "Stay with me Fullmetal- I can see the medics." He said and tapped Ed's cheek- gaining the young boys weak attention.

"Col-onel-"

"Stay with me Ed-" He was practically begging as the medics ran up.

As the medics showed up one of them took over keeping pressure on Ed's wound, "We need to get him to a hospital."

Mustang nodded as the stretcher was brought up then sat back in shock as they loaded the young boy onto it. Another medic looked over at him and helped him up, "Let's go."

...FMA...

Ed was quickly taken into surgery with a team of doctors and Roy was taken to a checkup room.

Mustang's nurse was pretty cute- but for once the Flame Alchemist didn't seem to care as multiple thoughts ran through his mind at once.

Soon he was cleared and Hawkeye entered the room, "Colonel?"

The Colonel looked at the Lieutenant, "It's not mine." He said- seeing the sniper staring at the blood on his uniform. The sniper nodded- telling him that she knew, "Any word on Fullmetal?"

"None yet sir." Hawkeye said and held out a fresh change of clothes, "Alphonse will be here soon sir- I suggest you get changed."

Roy nodded and took the clothes and Hawkeye left- giving her superior some room to get changed.

Once Roy was changed he wandered out to the waiting room where the rest of his team stood nervously.

Al sat silently on a chair next to the group, Mustang knew that if he could the young boy in the armor would be sobbing. Mustang put his hand on the armor's shoulder, giving him an encouraging nod- at least he hoped it was.

"Is my brother going to make it?" Al asked quietly.

Mustang nodded, "He'll be fine- He's the Fullmetal Alchemist- he won't let this beat him." Mustang said, hiding all doubt from him as he gave the young boy a confident smirk. It must've worked because after a moment the young boy nodded and sat up straight.

Hours passed and the group stood in silence the blonde haired smoker peeked over at the Colonel- who stared at the surgery doors silently. He sighed and looked away- wishing that he had a cigarette to help relieve his tension.

Finally one of the surgeons walked out, "The Fullmetal Alchemist?"

Anybody who had sat down immediately sat up, "Is my brother okay?" Al quickly asked.

"He's stable, right now he is resting." The surgeon said, "He is suffering from a shot to his back just an inch above his heart which rickoshea through his body before exiting through the front between the seventh and eighth rib. He lost a lot of blood and suffered from shock and a popped lung." The doctor said.

"Can I see him?' Al asked timidly.

"He's resting right now. You can go ahead and see him though."

Al nodded and followed the doctor to his brother's room, Hawkeye looked over to the Colonel, "Go." was all she needed to tell him and he took off after the doctor.

As Mustang entered the room he held his breath when he saw the small pale body lying on the bed with tubes attached to the boy and a breathing mask placed over his nose and mouth. He was still asleep and was breathing quietly.

Al sat down silently in the chair next to the wall and the Colonel stepped up next to the bed looking down at his young subordinate, "Do you know who did this?" Al asked.

"We're looking for the person-" He said out loud but was mentally cursing. They had no clues on who the person was- nobody was able to get even a license plate, "We'll find whoever did this."

 _And when we do I'll burn them into a crisp..._

...FMA...

Al sat silently in the hospital room as his brother slept- knowing that he wouldn't be happy when he woke up. He looked over at his brother, how had this happened? It wasn't like Ed had gone out looking for trouble like it was normally- he had been attacked, and that made Alphonse even more angry then he already was.

 _I should've gone with him-_ he mentally cursed himself, _I could've shielded him- I could've-_

"There was nothing you could have done." Hawkeye said as she walked into the room. Bewildering the suit of armor- how had she known, it wasn't like he could show emotion.

Al looked over to his brother, "But-"

"No-" Hawkeye peeked over, "The Colonel was standing right next to him when it happened. Nobody saw it coming, but there is something that you can do right now."

Al stood up, wanting to be able to help his brother, "What is it?"

"Right now we are trying to keep it quiet that Edward is alive- however that won't last too long. The attacker may come back- Edward will be kept under security until the attacker is caught. You don't sleep, so do you think that you can stay with him?"

Al quickly nodded, he wasn't going anywhere.

Hawkeye nodded and looked down at Ed, she quietly flicked some hair out of his face, "Sleep well Edward." Then she turned and walked out peeking back at Alphonse, "Keep him safe."

"I will."

...FMA...

"Dammit." The Colonel cursed after he set down the phone. He folded his hands and rested his face in them- growling to himself.

"Sir?" Hawkeye looked over at him.

"Just as I thought- nobody was able to identify the attacker." The Colonel sat back- he may have been acting calm but his entire team knew that he was the exact opposite. However nobody said anything- knowing one more thing would make the Colonel snap, literally.

The Colonel looked out the window then picked up his phone again Dialing the number as quickly as he could after a moment of silence besides the ringing on his phone the entire office could hear the click of the phone being picked up and the familiar voice answered the phone, "Yo Roy-boy! What's up you never call-"

"Hughes-" Mustang interrupted, "I need your help."

...FMA...

Ed groaned, feeling a full pain throughout his whole body, _what happened? I feel like someone ran me over several times..._

"Ed?" a familiar voice said next to him. After a moment Ed realized that his eyes were closed he slowly opened them and was met with empty welcome of a hospital ceiling.

Ed scowled- he hated hospitals.

"Brother! You're awake!" Ed looked over at his younger brother who would've been in tears of he could.

"Al... What happened? I don't remember the assignment being that bad."

"Do you not remember brother?" Al asked worryingly.

Ed drowned then it hit him as he remembered. He had about to give the Colonel-bastard the smack down of his life when he heard a gunshot followed by a sharp pain. He felt someone tackle him to the ground before everything came too blurry to remember. "I remember a gunshot..."

"You were shot brother." Al whispered quietly, "You almost died. If the Colonel hadn't been there you would be dead."

Ed sighed, he hated being indebted to the Colonel- but he couldn't leave his brother alone. "Did they get whoever shot me?"

"They're still looking for the person. Whoever did it shot you then took off before anybody has the chance to identify the person."

"So that's why there's guards out my door," Ed said- being able to see a ruff of the military blue uniform in the doorway. So nodded silently in response. Ed sighed and shifted- wincing at the full pain. "So how long am I in here for this time?"

"A few weeks." The doctor answered as he walked in, "I'm glad that you are awake Fullmetal Alchemist."

Ed nodded as the doctor checked his vitals, "You're lucky to be alive."

Ed nodded once again, keeping the conversation small- another thing he didn't like, nosey doctors.

The doctor started asking questions about how he felt, but like everything else Ed kept his answers short.

The doctor left and after a moment there was a knock at the door, Ed looked over as the Colonel stepped in, "Al- how about you get some Alchemy books for Ed, he's gonna be here for a little while we both know that the only way to keep him still for more than five minutes is to have him dissect one of those."

Al hesitated, then got the idea and nodded, "I'll be right back."

Ed nodded and watched his brother leave then he turned to Mustang, "What was that?"

"How are you feeling Fullmetal?" the Colonel asked as he pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down.

"Like I was just shot." Ed said then looked into the Colonel's eyes. "What's up?"

"Fullmetal, have you noticed anybody following you recently?" Ed was surprised by how serious the Colonel's voice was at that moment.

"Wha- no..." he stopped- remembering the man at the train station.

The Colonel seemed to be able to detect that Ed remembered something, "What is it Fullmetal?"

"There was a man at the train station. I'm not sure if he got on the same train as us but-"

"Did you see what this man looked like?" Mustang cut in.

Ed frowned, "He was tall- with a brown coat with it's hood up. I couldn't see his face."

"So you think it's a he?"

"Judging by the build, yeah." Ed said then turned back to the Colonel, "Why are you asking this?"

"I was just mailed pictures of you on your last assignment." The Colonel said and watched Ed's face as it turned to shock.

"Somebody took pictures of me?" Ed said, then he looked around- feeling slightly creeped out. Was somebody watching him now? He looked back at the Colonel, "Do you think that whoever took pictures of me is the same guy who shot me?"

The Colonel nodded, "Probably." He watched as Ed looked over at the far wall, he reached out and touched his shoulder- gaining the young alchemist's attention. "You get some rest Fullmetal, and don't worry- we'll find this guy."

Ed was silent- he looked away and slowly nodded, Mustang stood up and reached out and messed up Ed's hair. Ed scowled up at Mustang who smirked down at him. Then he turned and left just as Alphonse returned with three books in his arms, "Keep an eye on him." Mustang said then peeked over at Ed one more time. Afterwards he quickly left.

...FMA...

Hawkeye stood out by the car as the Colonel approached, "How is he?"

"Scared." Mustang sighed, "He did notice somebody watching him at the previous train station. Didn't really see what he looked like, the person was a tall and was male judging by the build."

"That's more than we have right now." Hawkeye pointed out, "What shall we do now sir?"

"We'll find this bastard." The Colonel growled.

A car pulled up next to them and it's window rolled down to reveal Havoc, "Oh good- so you were heading back."

"What is it Second Lieutenant?"

Havoc sighed and held up and envelope, "You got mail."

...FMA...

"Bastard." The Colonel growled and threw the photos on the table, they were of Ed and the Colonel just before Ed was shot. In the photo Ed had his fist raised in the air and was yelling at the Colonel- who was smirking back at him, unaware of what was just about to happen. "So that was the same man."

He flipped the envelope over and frowned- yet again no return address or anything to give any hints of where it came from- not that he was expecting anything. "So nobody saw who dropped this off?"

"Nope." Havoc sighed, "It was dropped off in the Eastern Command mailbox just like the last one."

"Well I want eyes on every mailbox in East City."

"That's a lot of mail boxes." Breda pointed out.

"Well I don't get to rest until this Bastard is caught and neither do you- so you better hope we catch him soon." The Colonel said and picked up another photo- frowning.

The team looked at each other, they knew that Ed getting shot scared the Colonel- in fact it scared all of them- they had almost lost a member of their team. "We'll find this guy." Havoc said out loud and the others nodded and immediately got to work.

...FMA...

The next day Mustang immediately went to visit Fullmetal after work. He walked into the hospital and headed towards the room where he could hear Ed arguing with a doctor about something, although it was hard to hear what. The Colonel smirked- at least he could tell that Fullmetal was feeling better.

He walked up as the doctor left the room, "Oh good Colonel Mustang, you're here."

"Fullmetal giving you too much hassle?" Mustang asked.

"No more than usual-" The doctor peeked back, "Although Major Elric's condition has taken a bad turn."

Mustang looked over, "What's wrong?"

"There seems to be some more internal bleeding. He's going to need another surgery so we can patch that part up- that will make his hospital stay about a week longer." The doctor said.

 _Fullmetal isn't going to be happy about that-_ then he realized that the information he had just learned was probably what they were arguing about. He sighed and nodded, "When is the surgery?"

"We're going to knock him out in a few minutes- but if you want to talk to him go on ahead." The doctor said then left. Mustang sighed once again then walked into Ed's room.

Ed was still lying down- but he still seemed tired. "How it going Fullmetal?"

"Doc said that I'm still bleeding on the inside. He said that they're going to put me through a second surgery." Ed said and Mustang sat down.

"Any new news?" Ed asked.

Mustang sat back, "I was mailed photos of just before you were shot." He watched Ed's face for a moment then continued, "Judging by the pictures they were taken by the same man who shot you."

"So he took a picture before he shot me? That's sick." Ed scowled and winced at the dull pain running through his body. Mustang peeked back as the doctor walked in.

"We're going to take him to surgery." The doctor said.

Ed peeked over at Mustang who stood up and messed up his hair with a soft smile, "I'll be back tomorrow."

Ed nodded and watched the Colonel leave.

...FMA...

Mustang spent the next three days in the same routine- go to work then visit Fullmetal in the hospital. He would stay with him for a few hours then he would return home.

"Anything new?" Ed asked.

"Nothing- I have my men watching every mailbox in the city, he hasn't made another move." Mustang scowled, "But he'll move soon- and when he does we'll catch him." _And I'll burn that bastard to ashes._ He thought in his mind.

Ed peeked over at Mustang. Mustang stood up to leave and Ed quickly grabbed his sleeve. "What is it Fullmetal?"

Ed didn't look at him, his bangs hid his eyes, "Colonel-"

Mustang frowned and sat on his bed, "What's wrong Fullmetal?"

"It's just- what does this guy want with me?"

"No idea." Mustang reached out and put his hand on the top of the boy's head. "But I promise I won't let him touch you."

Ed stared into his superiors eyes for a moment and then he slowly nodded, "Mustang?"

"Yes?"

"Can- can you close the window? I feel like I'm being watched." Ed said while looking out the window. Mustang peeked over and nodded, then he stood up and closed the shutters- looking out to see if anybody was looking in. Then he looked back at Fullmetal once the shutters were closed, "Is that better?"

Ed hesitated then nodded, "Colonel-"

Mustang stood next to his bed.

"Thanks."

The Colonel nodded, "Get some rest Fullmetal."

...FMA...

Mustang sighed as he pulled into his driveway and shut off the car. He got out of the car, closing the car and wandered up to his door.

It took him a minute to unlock his door but when he did he opened the door and stepped inside- stepping on something.

He took a step back and looked down at his feet at an envelope on the floor, "That son of a-" He quickly pulled on his glove and turned on his light. Then he searched his house and found nothing- but the back door wide open.

He immediately picked up the phone after a couple of rings the familiar voice of Hawkeye answered the phone, "Lieutenant."

"Colonel?"

"He was in my house." Mustang said as he opened the envelope, looking at the pictures.

"Are you alright sir?"

Mustang looked at the pictures of Mustang sitting with the Ed in the hospital- he could see Al just entering the room. The picture had been taken the first day Mustang had visited Ed the photo had been taken through the window. "I'm fine, but we have a problem- the attacker knows that Ed is alive."

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 **Mwahahaha!- Great now I'm laughing like Rukia... Wrong Anime**

 **Not too long ago I watched Roy Mustang's laugh and I just died laughing! Sadly I could see Mustang getting drunk and doing that...**

 **Anyway- feel free to review, but no flames plz!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here we go chapter three! Poor Ed is still stuck in the hospital-**

 **Thanks for the review from**

 **\- I Had A Dream**

 **\- Attackoneverything**

 **I'm glad you like it! I'm gonna try to make this bigger then my Sickness story (which for those of you that haven't read it it's five chapters) I'm not gonna drag it out for too long though!**

 **I'm starting to get more people involved in this story then just Roy's team- this should be fun- or mildly horrifying, depending on who it is...**

 **Feel free to review, but no flames plz!**

 **All rights go to Hiromu Arakawa!**

 **...FMA...**

Mustang sat next to the bed where Ed lay sleeping. Riza stood behind him silently as she looked at the photo's "Guards are posted outside the door and his window." She said then handed the envelope back to him, "It troubles me that he was inside your house."

Mustang nodded, "I don't get this guy- he shoots Fullmetal and stalks him, but why send me the photos?" He looked over at Ed, who still hadn't moved since his second surgery. He peeked back at Hawkeye, "What exactly does he want?"

"Sir?"

Mustang sighed and sat back, "The attacker knows that Ed is here. He was willing to attack Eastern Command. Some guards won't stop him."

"Then what do you think we should do Colonel?" Hawkeye asked, the Colonel shook his head.

"I don't know- we can't move Ed from the hospital until he is cleared to go. But he can't be alone once he is released."

"We can head back to Resembool." Al spoke up.

"Not a good idea." Mustang spoke up, "Fullmetal needs to be near us for protection." Mustang sat back. "This man followed the two of you all the way here. He will have no problem following the two of you back to your hometown."

Al slowly nodded, "Right... So, what are we going to do?"

"I may have an idea." Mustang said.

Suddenly a photo of a cute little girl with pigtails was shoved into Mustang's face, "Isn't she adorable- she just started walking!"

"Hughes." Mustang growled, "In case you've noticed I'm not really in the mood-"

"Now now, no need to be mean- not when you called me all the way from Central." Maes Hughes stood up and pushed up his glasses, then he looked over at the sleep Ed. "How is he?"

"He went through a second surgery-" Mustang sighed, "And this creep is still on the move." He handed Hughes the envelopes.

Hughes silently looked through the photos, after a little while he spoke, "I'm one for taking photos- but this guy is a real sicko- had Ed seen the man?"

"Apparently he saw him once- but he wasn't able to identify him." the Colonel looked back at Ed.

"Did the man say anything?"

"Not according to Fullmetal."

Hughes frowned and slowly nodded, "You got one hell of a sicko on your hands. I'll look and see if there were any other cases like this before Ed- hopefully he's just a serial attacker- it will make it easier to predict his moves." He put the photos back into the envelope and held onto them. "You stay with Edo, got it?"

Mustang hesitated then sighed, "Fine." He said, "Hughes-"

"Yeah?"

"He was at my house."

Hughes looked back with a serious look in his eyes, then he nodded slowly, "Keep an eye on him." Then he left.

Hawkeye looked over to the Colonel, "Sir I'd advise you to stay here until Edward wakes up. Soldiers are watching your home to see if Edward's attacker comes back. Edward will need to know about further updates."

Between the two of them unspoken words were said and Mustang nodded. Then Hawkeye left, "I will make sure that Havoc brings the paperwork over."

"Right." Mustang sat back and looked over at Ed.

 _And if that bastard returns for Ed- I'll need to be here so I can protect Fullmetal- and so I can burn that bastard into a pile of ash._

...FMA...

Ed groaned and opened his eyes- once again his chest was sore and he was incredibly freaking tired. He frowned as he stared at the boring white ceiling. _Great- now I'm stuck in here for another week._

"Ed?" Ed looked over at his brother, "How are you feeling?"

"Just a little tired." Ed looked over at the closed window, "How long have I been asleep?"

"A few days." Al quietly answered. They stayed quiet for a moment then finally Al spoke up, "Are you hungry brother?"

"A little-"

"Well look who took his sweet time waking up." Mustang said as he walked into the room with the typical smirk on his face. He walked up next to Ed's bed and looked down at him, "You're looking better, are you feeling better?"

Ed thought for a moment- then slowly nodded. He did feel better than before, they must've fixed everything this time. He reached out and grabbed the Colonel's sleeve, "Anything new?" He asked.

Mustang quietly nodded then sat down, "I got another envelope with more pictures."

"Then you found him?" Ed asked and Mustang shook his head, "But I thought-"

"He broke into my house." Mustang cut in as he sat back, "He left it for me to find."

"Mustang?"

"Hmm?"

Ed looked away, "Why is he sending you the pictures?" He finally looked back over at him, "If he's trying to creep me out then why doesn't he leave it for me to find- in most situations like this that's what they do, or they send it to their parents- not that I have any."

"Then that's probably why he is sending it to me." Mustang said and sighed.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

 _I'm the closest thing these boys have to a parent-_ he mentally slapped himself for letting the thought slip, "Nothing." He looked over at Ed who stared into his eyes for a moment then he looked away, "Do you still feel like someone is watching you?"

Ed hesitated then slowly nodded.

Mustang nodded then scooted closer- keeping his voice quiet, "He knows that you're here." He said Ed looked over, "I'm talking to the doctor to get you out of here early- you will still be on bed rest-"

"Am I not safe here?"

Mustang frowned, "I'm not sure- the last picture was taken through the window." He said gesturing to the window that Ed wanted closed. Al immediately stood up and peeked out the window- careful to make sure that nobody could look inside.

Ed looked down at his automail hand, "So where am I going?"

"I'm not sure yet." He sat back, "The doctor is against moving you right now though."

He sighed and looked over at the closed window, Mustang stood up, "Don't worry we'll find this creep." He watched as Ed gave a quiet nod, "Stay in the hospital for now-"

"Wha-"

"I know you Fullmetal-" The Colonel cut in, "You are not in any condition to fight. So don't even think about leaving to try and find him. I don't care how much you hate getting help." Mustang ordered.

Ed scowled and looked away, "I'm not that stupid-"

"I never said you were." Mustang said and Ed looked over at him shocked. Mustang merely smirked and continued, "Only too stubborn for your own good sometimes. Stay here and rest."

"Fine."

Mustang nodded then left.

Al looked over at his brother, "I hope you weren't lying to him."

Ed sighed, "I wish I was." He closed his eyes- exhaustion taking over him, and he slowly slipped into sleep.

...FMA...

Mustang stepped into his office where Hughes was waiting for him, "Did you find something?"

"I did and you're not gonna like it."

"I don't like a damn thing about this." Mustang said as he walked up and sat in his desk, "So what is it?"

"A case from five years ago." Hughes said, "A new State Alchemist went missing."

"Happens a lot." Mustang admitted regretfully, "State Alchemist aren't exactly the popular type- so what's similar between this one and Fullmetal's case?"

"Photos were sent to the victim's parents for an entire week before the victim went missing. How long have you been getting photos of Ed?" Hughes asked, "You are the closest thing to a parent that Ed has-"

"No I am not-" Mustang snapped, "About a week."

"Huh?"

"I've been getting photos for about a week now." Mustang confirmed, "Did they ever find the victim?"

"Not recognizable." Hughes said, "Ed's got guards with him right?"

"Of course." Mustang said, "And I've been there as much as I could." He picked up his phone after the first ring, "This is Colonel Mustang."

" _Sir you have a call from an Alphonse Elric-"_

"Patch it through." After a moment he could hear the panicked kid.

" _Colonel Mustang- I only left him for a second-"_

The Colonel sat up in his seat, "Alphonse is your brother alright?" He cut in- gaining the entire office's attention.

" _He's fine. It's just that there's an envelope here-"_

"Stay with him Al- don't leave him for a second, I'm coming over." Then He hung up the phone and immediately stood up, "An envelope was left in Fullmetal's hospital room."

"Is Ed alright?"

"According to Al he's fine." The Colonel said as he rushed out and Hughes got on the phone.

"I want the entire hospital on lockdown- Yes! The entire thing- You have a murderous psycho in your building- Lock it down!"

...FMA...

Mustang rushed into Ed's hospital room- seeing Al standing next to a sleeping Ed. Mustang walked forward and took the envelope out of the armor's hands. He turned to the guards, "How the hell did this get in here?" He snapped, "You were supposed to be making sure that nobody entered this room."

The guards looked at each other but kept quiet.

Mustang growled, "Get out of my sight."

The guards quickly left and Mustang opened the envelope and pulled out the photos. He looked at them for a moment then cursed and put them back in the envelope. Then he walked up to Ed and gently shook him, "Fullmetal- can you hear me?"

Ed grunted then opened his eyes, "Wha- do you want you bastard?" He asked groggily- rubbing his eyes.

"Are you feeling?"

Ed looked over at the Colonel sleepily, "Tired- what the hell do you want?"

"Are you hurting anywhere or do you feel more tired than when you fell asleep?" Mustang asked- ignoring Ed's question.

Ed frowned, clearly not impressed with being ignored, "I'm fine- why are you acting like a worried- you know what never mind."

There was a knock at the door and a soldier stepped in saluting, "Colonel Mustang sir, we have searched the whole building- it seems that the attacker has escaped."

"He was here?" Ed pipped up.

Mustang peeked back and gave him a curt nod before ordering the soldier, "Widen the search- I want this bastard found!"

"Yes sir!"

The soldier ran off and Ed eyed the envelope in Roy's hand, "Are those more photos?" Ed asked and Mustang nodded silently again, "Where were they taken?"

Mustang frowned then he messed up Ed's hair, "I'm going to talk to the doctor again to get you out of here- this place is no longer safe-"

"Arrangements have already been made to move Fullmetal to safer housing." Said a new voice and Mustang turned to see who was standing in the doorway.

"Fuhrer King Bradley sir!" Mustang quickly saluted, "What brings you here sir?"

"The life of one of my best alchemists is in jeopardy, do you honestly thing I would stay behind and do nothing?" the Fuhrer said then smiled, "I'm glad to see that you are in charge of this case Colonel Mustang, I would like to help."

"Of course sir." Mustang said- keeping the shock out of his voice.

The Fuhrer stepped farther into the room, "What do you know about the attacker so far?" He asked.

"Unfortunately not much sir- it's a male- he's tall and is quite intelligent."

Bradley nodded, "I hear that this man keeps sending photos of Major Elric here?" He asked and Mustang nodded handing over the envelope, the Fuhrer looked through the photo's frowning, "Major Elric most definitely needs to be moved to safer quarters- this is far too close for my comfort. Alphonse Elric?"

"Yes sir?"

"Where exactly did you find this envelope?"

"On the nightstand sir."  
Ed looked at the nightstand next to his head and shivered, the man was in arm's distance from him- and he hadn't known it.

"Colonel Mustang. I'm putting you fully in charge of the protection of the Fullmetal Alchemist until this man is caught- I hear that this may be connected to a case from five years ago, I will not lose another of my Alchemists to this man." He ordered and the Colonel saluted.

"Yes sir!"

Fuhrer Bradley nodded then turned, "As for you Fullmetal- get plenty of rest and heal up, you're in good hands." He peeked back at Mustang, "I assume the rest of these photos are at your office?"

"Yes sir, I headed over here as soon as I heard." Mustang answered.

"Good, I will head over there and look through them with Lieutenant Colonel Hughes and see if we can find anything about this man." Bradley said then put a random melon on the nightstand, "For your recovery young man."

"T-thank you sir." Ed said quietly- baffled as the man left the room. The three of them remained frozen for a moment then they commenced breathing.

"Great." the Colonel looked down at Ed, "Now I'm stuck on guard duty."

"Just assign some more guards then and quit complaining."

"Not how it works kid." Mustang sighed and sat down, "The Fuhrer assigned me to guard you- that means that I have to stay with you."

Ed frowned, "No way in hell."

"Fuhrer's orders."

Ed scowled and looked away, "So I'm gonna be stuck with you until this guy is found?" Mustang nodded and his scowl deepened, "Damn it this sucks."

Mustang sighed, "Then go back to sleep- time will pass by quicker-"

"No way in hell am I going to sleep with a creep like you in the room!"

"Brother-"

"I already came in here many times while you were sleeping." Mustang said and sat back, "I'm not going to do anything to you, also you need the rest so your body can fully recover- you've been put through a lot of stress recently you have to rest."

Ed was silent for a moment, then he spoke quietly, "You never told me where those photos were taken." He pointed out. The Colonel remained silent, "Does it have something to do with why you have your gloves on in the hospital- for all you know he just got a lucky break and was able to sneak in once- unless it wasn't just one time-" He looked over.

Mustang sighed, "Damn prodigies." He mumbled, then he messed up Fullmetal's hair once more, "Get some rest kid- everything will be fine."

Ed frowned at him for a moment then turned his head- closing his eyes, and drifted off to sleep.

"Colonel?" Al asked quietly, "I never did open the envelope- where were those photos taken?" He asked quietly so he wouldn't wake up his brother.

Mustang frowned and tugged on his glove.

...FMA...

"Dammit he was that close?" Hughes mumbled while looking at the photo, "Even sadder that it would be a cute photo if it weren't taken by a creep."

"Does this fit the same profile as the last case?" The Fuhrer spoke up- making Hughes jump for the third time that day. He nodded quietly.

"Almost exactly, I just hope this guy doesn't get any closer." He said looking down at the photo.

It looked like the kind of picture Hughes himself would have taken. Mustang was sitting on Ed's bed talking to the young boy. They both seemed to be relaxed and in one of the photos Mustang was messing up Ed's hair reassuringly.

The photo had been taken through the door of Ed's hospital room.

Breda shivered, "That guy was so close and the Colonel didn't even notice him?"

"That doesn't even seem possible-" Fury said shyly- still a little nervous that the Fuhrer was in the room, "The Colonel would've seen him- he wouldn't just not notice something so dangerous so close to him, he was in Ishval after all."

The team nodded in agreement- that definitely wasn't like the Colonel at all, "Unless the guy is a doctor." Havoc mumbled and the entire room went silent.

"That would explain how he managed to slip past the guards." Hawkeye said.

"Contact Colonel Mustang with this latest update." Bradley ordered.

...FMA...

Roy sighed out of boredom, it still bugged him- that man had been so close, if only he had looked over he would've seen the attacker- _then I could've burned him to ashes and just ended this mess._ He frowned and peeked over at the sleeping boy. He wanted to chuckle- Ed looked so childlike when he was sleeping- he frowned- well he was a child, it was easy to forget that.

With the Transmutation and joining the military he gave up his childhood. Now he was a thirteen year old boy forced to live a life that not even most adults could handle.

Mustang sighed and sat up straight as he heard the clicking of boots running down the hall and got ready to snap- just in case.

A soldier ran into the room and saluted, "Colonel Mustang sir!"

"Keep it down." Mustang scowled then stood up, "What is it?"

"I have a message from Lieutenant Colonel Hughes sir." The soldier said and handed over a slip of paper. Mustang nodded and took the paper.

"You are dismissed."

"Yes sir!" Then the soldier saluted once more and ran off.

The Colonel peeked back at the Elric brothers then quickly read the slip of paper. After a moment he scowled and snapped- burning the slip. "Dammit I should've known." He growled to himself.

 _The attacker may be a doctor working in the same hospital Edward is in._

"Alphonse- when you left did Fullmetal's doctor enter the room?"

"He passed by me in the hall." Al quickly answered.

Mustang scowled, _yeah and I may know who it is- he's been right next to us all along._

 **.**

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 **Duh dun duh dun!**

 **I'll make sure to update soon!**

 **Feel free to review- but no flames plz!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Finally Chapter four!**

 **I'm really sorry that it took so long- worse case of writer's block, it sucked... I had where I wanted to go but had no idea how to get there.**

 **I finally have a full plot for this story so I hope to be able to update this story more often- with that in mind I am in college and I'm working on my own book series so I'll do what I can.**

 **Thank you for your patience!**

 **Thanks for the review from**

 **-TransformingTurtle**

 **-I Had A Dream**

 **-Attackoneverything**

 **-Gena408**

 **I hope you all enjoy this!**

 **As always no flames!**

 **I do not own FMA, probably a good thing- all rights go to Hiromu Arakawa!**

 **...FMA...**

Ed scowled as he was helped into the hospital wheelchair. The nurse didn't seem too happy about the idea of Ed being released from the hospital early.

Ed normally would've been thrilled- except for the fact that he was being sent to the Eastern Command barracks with Colonel Mustang. He scowled even deeper- not to mention the fact that he hated being an invalid that couldn't even walk that far. The Colonel peeked over at Ed and smirked, "What's the matter Fullmetal- I thought you'd be happy about leaving the hospital."

"Being stuck with you isn't much better." Ed piped up and Mustang held a chuckle and started pushing the boy out of the room. The sooner he could get Fullmetal out of the hospital the better he would feel. He pushed Edward down the hall and outside where Hawkeye was waiting for them with a car.

"Sir." She said then she smiled down at Ed, "I'm glad to see that you're doing better Edward." The Lieutenant said and Ed nodded. Then she turned to Mustang, "Sir- the Fuhrer has asked for us to take Major Elric to the office for now. He wants to do a final sweep of the dorms where you two will be staying." She said then opened the back seat door.

Ed grumbled as the Colonel picked him up- helping him into the back seat. Ed hid his face- not wanting to show his embarrassment. Mustang sat him down in the seat and Hawkeye put the wheelchair in the trunk of the car. "Buckle yourself in." Mustang ordered.

"I know." Ed grumbled as he grabbed the seat belt. Mustang quickly closed the car door and got in the passenger's seat as Hawkeye had already claimed the driver's seat and he didn't dare deny what she wanted.

Ed sighed and leaned back into the seat and closed his eyes.

Mustang peeked into the rear view mirror and chuckled- seeing that the young Alchemist had already fallen asleep. Hawkeye peeked back- also noticing that he was asleep. "Is he healed enough to be out of the hospital?"

"We don't have a choice." Mustang mumbled. "That bastard was in arm's length of Fullmetal- we're lucky he didn't try to finish him off." He peeked back at the sleeping Ed- glad to see that he wasn't listening to their conversation.

Hawkeye slowly nodded, "Have you told Edward what the last photos were of?"

The Flame Alchemist sighed, "No." He looked out the window, "I promised that I would find that bastard- he was in feet of me and I didn't even notice." He growled.

Hawkeye peeked over at her superior, then she looked away, "We're getting close, are you going to wake Edward up?"

Mustang peeked back at the still sleeping Fullmetal Alchemist.

...FMA...

The first thing that Ed noticed as he started to drift back into the real world was that he had something soft and warm draped over him. Then he heard the whispering voices of Mustang's crew. It was nice enough for them to keep their voices down while he was sleeping- he was pretty sure it was because of the threat of Hawkeye looming over their heads though. "Colonel- I think he's waking up." Said the voice of Fury- who was much closer to him than the others.

He heard movement and someone's hand touch his shoulder, "Fullmetal are you coming to?" Asked the annoying voice of the Colonel.

Ed grumbled something that sounded mildly like an insult and opened his eyes. He looked around- realizing that he was in Mustang's office. He didn't remember waking up- Ed quickly hid his face to hide the embarrassment. "You alright Chief?" Havoc asked- amazingly not having a cigarette in his mouth- but yet again, probably due to Hawkeye.

"I'm fine." Ed sat up and took the glass of water as Fury handed over at him. He took a sip then asked, "How long have I been asleep?"

"A few hours." Breda answered, "Hughes is in town asking some of the civilians if they have seen that doctor you used to have."

Ed frowned and looked up, "The doctor?"

Mustang nodded, "He disappeared right after we found that envelope in your room."

"So you think that he's connected with those photos- or-"

"He was the only person in your room when Al had left. Breda asked the guards and they said that they saw him enter when Al had left."

"Nobody would even think of stopping him because he was a doctor." Havoc said.

"Then why didn't he kill me?" Ed pointed out bluntly, "He had plenty of chances to do so." Mustang felt a little pang- mostly because he knew that Fullmetal was right. After he promised that he wouldn't let this guy touch him- if the bastard wanted to he could have killed him so many times. Mustang mentally cursed himself.

Ed looked around, "Where's Al?"

"He's with Hughes." Mustang quickly answered, knowing that if he didn't Ed would be bolting out of the room- screw the injury. Ed nodded- seemingly satisfied with the answers, or at least he wasn't trying to bolt out of the room.

Ed looked over at the window- frowning when he saw the closed window. That told him that the man was still out there. He scowled- of course he had to the bad luck.

Ed looked over at Mustang who had returned to looking at photos on the table. Ed tapped Havoc's arm. "What's up chief?"

"Let me borrow your arm." Ed said and Havoc frowned, but obliged- he held up his arm, tensing it so Ed wouldn't fall. Ed used his arm to stand up and sit down in the wheelchair Fury quickly set up for him. Then he nodded to the two of them.

"Where you trying to go Chief?" Havoc asked and Ed pointed at Mustang. Havoc nodded and pushed the boy over to the Colonel.

Ed tapped the Colonel's shoulder and the man looked back at him. "Yes Fullmetal?"

"I'm incredibly bored-" Ed whined.

Mustang scoffed at his sudden childness. He rolled his eyes and turned, "Are you doing this just 'cause you can?"

"Normally when I get out of the hospital I head to the library to find some more clues." Ed said, "Or I'm sent on one of your stupid quests." He looked over at the photos, "Were those the recent photos?"

Mustang hesitated, then nodded.

Ed picked up the last photo and shivered, "Well- I guess this is reason number two for you guys to get me out of the hospital."

"I also got you out of the hospital under the promise that you'd be in bed rest." Mustang said and looked over at him, "Go back and get some more sleep, you look like you're about to pass out anyway."

Ed frowned- he was tired, which was annoying- he had just woken up. Ed sighed, "Fine." He mumbled and Havoc wheeled him over to the couch and helped him lay down. Mustang watched as Fullmetal got settled then looked back at the pictures.

Each time this man is getting closer and closer to him. Mustang frowned- suddenly there was a knock at the door, which was quickly answered by Hawkeye- revealing a frowning Hughes with a towering Alphonse behind him. "Is my brother alright?"

"He's resting." Hawkeye answered then let the two of them in.

Hughes immediately laundered over to Mustang dropping an envelope on the table. Mustang looked up at him, "Another one?"

"Found it in my car." Hughes said, "Good news is that this bastard is still in town."

Mustang nodded and opened the envelope- nearly gagging. In the photo Ed was still sleeping and he could see the man's hand touching Ed's hair. He cursed and turned the photo over where only one word was written.

 _Soon._

...FMA...

Mustang held a sigh as he wheeled Fullmetal through the door of the military dorms. He looked around and frowned, the last time he had lived in the dorms was his first few years after the training camp.

Ed was clearly not impressed with the idea either. He normally did sleep in the dorms but that was with Al- and he was free to do what he wanted. Now he couldn't not stuck in a wheelchair with the Colonel for a body guard.

The Colonel wheeled over to the bed, "Get some rest Fullmetal, Hawkeye will be here soon with some dinner." He said and helped the young Alchemist into the bed.

"This is annoying." Ed whined, "I can't even stand on my own."

"Well you were shot in the chest not too long ago, so until you're fully healed walking around wouldn't be a good idea." Mustang said and sat down in a chair not too far away.

Ed scowled, "It was my back." He said and laid down- staring up at the ceiling. After a moment he sighed, "Right. And what about Al?"

"He's with Hughes now- he'll be by later." Mustang said and sat back, debating on whether or not he should tell the young Alchemist about the previous photo he had gotten.

He frowned and looked over at the lamp, no he couldn't. Then he peeked over at the blonde as Ed sighed in annoyance. "I'm not happy with this either- but it's the Fuhrer's orders, so you're just going to have to put up with this." Mustang stated with a frown.

"It's not that- although it does suck that it has to be you Bastard that is watching over me." Ed said and looked over at the wall. "I guess you could say that I wondering why I seem to attract so much trouble."

"In all due fairness you do tend to go looking for it." Mustang said and Ed scowled in his direction. "You have a talent for pissing off people Fullmetal." He finished with a smirk.

"I don't remember pissing anybody off recently-"

"What about your last assignment?"

Ed scowled then looked away, "Not nearly enough for someone to want to kill me."

Mustang smirked and looked away, "Maybe we shouldn't trust you on how much you piss off other people. It must be hard seeing how-"

"Don't you dare say it." Ed growled and Mustang laughed.

Then there was a knock on the door and Mustang watched as the young alchemist tensed up. He frowned and stood up, slipping on his gloves as he walked over to the door, and opening it- no farther than the chain would allow, he sighed as it was only Hawkeye standing in the doorway, "Sir, I brought dinner."

Mustang nodded and opened the door, letting his Lieutenant in. She looked over at Ed with a warm smile, "How are you feeling Edward?"

"I've been worse." Ed answered and relaxed. Mustang quietly closed the door behind her- locking it then walked into the kitchen that they had set up (which wasn't much mind you.) "We really need to come up with a key word." Mustang said as he pulled out three plates.

"I'm fairly sure that you can recognize my voice sir." Hawkeye pointed out as she sat down on the sofa in the room. Mustang gave her the three plates then walked over and picked up Fullmetal- and idea that the pre-teen was not overly fond of.

"Hey!"

"You're not eating in bed and the doctor said that you shouldn't be walking for a bit." The Colonel said calmly as he set the sm-l alchemist on the couch next to Hawkeye. Then he sat across from the two as they dug in, "Any new leads?"

"None so far," Hawkeye said with a sigh, "We have the entire city looking for Doctor Perez- nothing has turned up so far."

"What about his background?" The Colonel asked then took another bite.

"Nothing that stands out- he was a small town medic then he left to go to a bigger medical school- he did some work in the South for a bit before transferring to Eastern Command." Hawkeye said with a sigh. "From the outside this guy seems completely normal."

"You might want to look into his past when he was in the small town." Ed spoke up, peeking up to see that both adults were looking over at him. "What? I've meet all sorts of small town weirdos- they can get away with more in a small town."

"Do you speak from experience?" Mustang teased and Fullmetal looked away quickly, "Although that would be a good place to look." He turned back to Hawkeye and Ed sat back, "Also cross check any places where he has gone recently with Fullmetal's."

"Yes sir. Do you want me to do the same with the previous victim?" She asked and Ed frowned.

"It can't hurt, it will at least give the family closure." Mustang said and sat back as Hawkeye stood up, already finished with her meal. Ed stared in shock at how fast the adults were able to eat. Mustang stood up and followed Hawkeye out, opening the door for her.

"I will get to work on that right away sir."

"Right."

She was about to leave when she looked back, "Keep him safe."

Mustang smirked, "I'm under orders to, and it would look bad on my reputation if I failed." He said with a smirk. She looked at him with eyes that said- _we all know what you really mean-_ then left, closing the door behind her.

Mustang locked the door then peeked back at Ed who sat on the couch with a scowl, "Bastard."

He smirked in response as he walked over, "Finish eating Fullmetal- you still need plenty of rest."

Ed scowled and took another bite of his food.

...FMA...

Mustang sat at the desk in the dorm and sighed as he flipped another page in Doctor Perez's background. He frowned staring the photo of the dark haired clean shaven man- hardly the type you'd imagine as a serial killer. _He was a star student- so why is he a killer now?_ He sat back and looked over at Fullmetal- who was practically engulfed in the bed and blankets. _Why is he after Fullmetal?_

Mustang raised an eyebrow as the young alchemist groaned and mumbled something in his sleep, shifting ever so slightly. He waited for a moment to see if the blonde was having another nightmare- which, according to Al- he had frequently. After a moment Ed's shifting stopped and he relaxed- Mustang nodded and sat back in his chair- he was about to return to his reading when he heard a small voice speak up.

"What time is it?"

"Almost five in the morning- go back to sleep Fullmetal."

He peeked over seeing Ed's tired gold eyes looking at him, "Have you been up all night?"

"Sergeant Fury stopped by earlier and I was able to take a nap, go back to sleep- you need to be resting." The Colonel said then returned to reading- missing the confused look in Fullmetal's eyes.

"Colonel-"

"Go back to sleep Fullmetal, that's an order."

"Colonel."

Mustang frowned, _his tone changed-_ he looked up and his frowned deepened when the young alchemist reached out and pointed at the window curtain next to the Colonel. He looked at the curtain and his eyes widened as he was the red dot shining on the curtain- like a laser.

As quickly as he could he threw himself to the ground as the window shattered by a bullet passing through.

"Colonel!"

"Stay where you are!" Mustang yelled and slipped on his glove and snapped- the explosion out the window giving him enough cover to run over to where the young alchemist was and pick him up, grunting to the sudden weight. Then he threw the door open and ran out into the hall- slamming the door behind him.

The Colonel quickly turned and ran down the hall to the exit stairwell and stopped- the young alchemist in his arms tensed up, "How the hell did you get in here?" Mustang snarled at Doctor Perez- who stood in front of the exit.

The man smiled, "I'm a doctor- anybody would let me in if I told them that I have a patient here."

"Like hell! All of Eastern Command is on the lookout for you!" Mustang snapped as he set Fullmetal on the ground. "Although you did save me the trouble of looking for you." Mustang stepped in front his charge. "However, challenging me one on one is a huge mistake on your part."

The doctor smirked and rolled up his sleeve- showing a transmutation circle, "Oh really?"

"Careful." Ed spoke up, "He's an alchemist-"

"So I've noticed." Mustang responded and as the doctor moved he snapped- the area where the doctor stood exploding- and a column of water shot up. "Shit!" The Colonel snapped as the column of water slammed into him- throwing him back.

"Colonel!" Ed shouted then turned back and clapped his hands together- but was too slow as the doctor grabbed his wrists and pulled him up- slamming him against the wall with his hands apart. Earning a small yelp from the young alchemist.

"I am already aware that all you have to do is clap your hands together to transmute." The doctor said as Ed struggled under his grip. "To bad for you- because I already have my transmutation circle ready to go. My alchemy focuses with water- humans have average sixty percent of water in them-" HIs transmutation circle glowed and Ed struggled harder as a choking feeling came to him, the doctor watched- almost amused as the young alchemist in his grip struggled for air. Then he spoke calmly, "All I have to do is raise the percentage of water in your body high enough for long enough and you'll drown from the inside out-"

Then there was a gunshot and the bullet hit the doctor's arm- destroying the transmutation circle and Ed gasped and coughed as the air returned to him. "Now you can't." Mustang snarled as he aimed his gun- not appearing to be someone that one would want to make any angrier- despite being soaking wet.

"Freeze!" A guard yelled as he ran up- followed by the rest of Mustang's team and Alphonse.

"Brother!" Al yelled as he spotted his older brother in the doctor's grasp. He tried to run forward but was stopped by Hawkeye. "But-"

"Stay back." Hawkeye said, her voice calm and firm.

After a moment the suit of armor nodded and looked back over to his brother- who hadn't taken his eyes off the doctor for a moment.

The doctor scowled as he looked at all the guns trained on him, then in one fluid motion he threw Ed in front of him before taking out a canister and threw it to the floor- where everything exploded in smoke.

The smoke cleared and the doctor had already passed them, heading down the stairwell. Havoc ran up next to Fullmetal and knelt down, "You alright chief?" He asked and the young alchemist nodded as he continued coughing.

"Stay with him." Mustang ordered and ran past them, throwing his wet gloves to the ground and grabbed another set from the case Hawkeye already had opened for him. Then he ran down the hall- throwing the stairwell door open and running down as fast as he could.

Mustang looked down the stairwell and caught a glimpse of the doctor's jacket disappearing out of view and he ran down the steps as fast as he could and out the doors on the bottom floor. "Hold it!" Mustang yelled as he spotted the doctor run around the corner and he slipped on one of his gloves and ran after him.

He ran around the corner and stopped as the doctor tipped over a large canister filled with what smelled like oil. The Colonel held up his hand ready to snap and the doctor laughed. "Are you really planning on doing that?"

Mustang frowned, spotting a huge stack of containers next to them- just like the one the doctor spilled over earlier- some of the oil had seeped under the other canisters and the Colonel cursed before looking back at the doctor.

"Go ahead Flame Alchemist!" The doctor taunted. "Snap! Only a spark has to hit this oil and we'll both be blown sky high!"

"You must have some kind of death wish." Mustang growled, but held his ground.

The doctor grinned- making him look less like the calm doctor that Ed had in the hospital and more like the crazy murderer that they were looking for. "We won't be the only ones getting blown sky high of course."

The Flame Alchemist scowled and looked up, recognizing the broken window to the dorm where he and Ed had been staying- and he somehow kept his face straight as realization struck him- Ed would still be with the rest of his team out in the hall. He looked back at the man, _if there's a blast- they'll be caught in it as well._ "Was this your plan?" He growled, "Have me get all of us killed?"

Perez chuckled and held out his arms, "I have all sorts of traps set up for you Colonel Roy Mustang, the mighty Flame Alchemist-"

"Then I doubt you have too many set up for me!" A deep voice yelled as the ground was blown to bits underneath the two of them- throwing them back.

Mustang hit the ground and grunted before pushing himself up as he heard the familiar chant, "Allow me to show you the alchemy passed down the Armstrong Family for generations!" The huge man (without a shirt, instead having sparkles for no reason that anybody could figure out.) stomped forward as he picked up a rock the size of Mustang's head. Then he threw it and punched it- transforming it into a statue of the Major's head and shooting it at the doctor, who somehow managed to dodge.

"Impressive." Alex Louis Armstrong said then picked up another rock, "Now let's try this!" He yelled and attacked again.

Mustang looked over as Hughes stepped up next to him, "When did Major Armstrong get here?

"This afternoon." Hughes knelt down, "Is Edo okay?"

"He's with the rest of my team- he'll be fine." Mustang answered then looked over to where Armstrong was fighting, he frowned as the doctor used another water transmutation. _I'm sure I got his transmutation circle- which means he had more than one._ His frown deepened and Hughes took notice of this. _So why didn't he use the other one against Fullmetal?_

Suddenly the doctor did another Transmutation and the entire alley was filled with steam, Armstrong stepped back and glared into the steam to try and see anything- he was able to catch a silhouette moving into another alley, "He's escaping!"

The doctor snickered, "Too late-" Then he looked back and his eyes widened in shock as a woman with short hair and a military uniform stepped in his way- fist raised.

Armstrong, Mustang, and Hughes jumped as they heard what sounded like a punch and stared in shock as the doctor came flying out of the back alley- crashing into the wall and slumped to the ground.

Then the three of them watched as Second Lieutenant Maria Ross stepped out of the back alley and saluted. "Sorry about that, he put me in a bad mood- it won't happen again sir!" She said- Sergeant Brosh standing behind her with tears running down his face for whatever reason.

Hughes let out a little snicker before standing up, "No need to apologize Second Lieutenant." He said as he walked over to the doctor and pulled him up- putting handcuffs on him.

Mustang stood up and walked over to where the doctor was and knelt in front of him as the man started to wake up. "Why Fullmetal?" He asked, "Most of your traps were made for me- I have plenty of subordinates, so why did you go after Fullmetal?"

The doctor laughed and glared into his eyes, "Doesn't matter- I can't wait until you and your military burn in hell."

"We'll get more information out of him." Mustang peeked back as the Fuhrer walked up, "Well done all of you." He said and looked down at the doctor, "We finally have got another dangerous criminal off the streets."

Mustang nodded and stood up, looking back at the doctor, "You lose." He said and walked away- a frown still on his face-

Something isn't right.

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

 **There's Chapter four!**

 **Not as long as I hoped it would be, but I didn't want to put too much in one chapter and this was a good place to stop for now.**

 **I hope to be able to work on this one more often, and now that I have a plot- it'll be much easier!**

' **Til next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Finally, chapter 5!**

 **I am so sorry about the long wait- things got insane! Life always seems to want to get in the way of fun! =(**

 **Thanks for the reviews from-**

 **-darkraistlyn**

 **-Attackoneverything**

 **-FMAgeek**

 **-AKanime**

 **Feel free to review**

 **NO FLAMES PLZ**

 **Thank you all for being patient- and for those of you that are waiting on my other story (END Games) I'm just adding a bit more to the next chapter and it'll be out.**

 **Sorry for the wait!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **...FMA...**

Mustang's gut twisted as he looked around- something was not right, and he knew it. The Colonel looked back at the doctor who was restrained in handcuffs and was being loaded into a military vehicle all the while sneering back at Mustang. "Don't think this is over Flame-" The doctor didn't get to finish his sentence as the door was shut on him.

Armstrong peeked over at the Colonel and noticed the frown on the alchemist's face. "Is something wrong Colonel?" The large man asked as he stepped up next to him.

Instead of answering the strong armed alchemist Mustang frowned and looked up at the broken window of the room that he and Fullmetal had been staying in-

And realization struck him- someone had shot through the window, but they found Perez in the hall next to the stairwell.

There was no way that Perez could have gone from the building next to them to the hallway in the time period between the two events...

"There's a second person." Mustang spoke up.

Armstrong looked up at the window and must've come up with the same conclusion because he slowly nodded, "I will go search the building next door. It may be best if you head back towards Edward."

The Colonel nodded, "You be careful, if the person is still in there he will be armed."

"I will keep that in mind." The Major responded as he made his way over to the building next to them, then the Colonel turned and walked back towards the military dorms. "Roy?" Hughes asked as the Colonel passed him by, "Is something wrong?"

"You still have your knifes on you correct?"

"When do I not have them?" The over doting father spoke sarcastically.

"Good." Mustang ignored the other man's sarcasm and Hughes frowned, "Something tells me that we're going to need them." The knife holder silently followed- and slipped a knife into the palm of his hand as they slipped into the military dorms- immediately heading towards the staircase.

A gunshot rang and the two soldiers looked at each other before running up the stairs as fast as they could.

Mustang threw the door opened and froze- staring at one of the guards with his gun drawn. He heard Hughes behind him curse as he caught sight of the scene.

The shot that had fired had hit Alphonse- and only succeeded in knocking off his helmet- but it was enough time to grab Fullmetal-

Which was the scene he was staring at now, Hawkeye aiming her gun at the attacker- and the attacker aiming his gun at Edward, who he held up next to him.

"Let him go sergeant." Mustang spoke up- the man immediately turned in his direction- pressing the gun against the blonde's head. "Where are you going to go? You have at least eight guns aimed at you- a pissed off guy in a suit of armor- the Lieutenant Colonel behind me is ready to stick you with a knife any moment-" He held up his gloved hand, "And all I have to do is snap and you'll be a pile of ash. Not to mention that once Fullmetal gets his arm free he's not gonna be acting like a good hostage."

The man's eyes widened as he looked down to check on his hostage- but was a fraction too late as the young blonde clapped and touched his gun- transmuting it into a weird looking trumpet. Then he swung his elbow back and caught the man in the ribs with his metal appendage- and Mustang had to fight the urge to wince as the man doubled over.

Immediately Fullmetal pulled away and barely even had a moment to catch his breath before Havoc pulled him away from the man and behind the line up of guns. Mustang smirked over at the young alchemist. "Really now Fullmetal? I turn my back for only a few moments and all hell breaks loose?"

The blonde scowled in response. "Don't be over dramatic Colonel- Bastard. I could handle that on my own." Edward scowled up at the smirking Colonel.

"Yeah- sure thing chief." Havoc said as he forced him to sit down. "Just stay here- you're still healing last time I checked."

Mustang frowned and looked over as the man was pulled to his feet and dragged down the hallway. "Well that was too easy." He heard Hughes mumble behind him- and the Colonel nodded silently. That was too easy- it wasn't right. Nothing ever came easy-

He peeked over at the blonde alchemist who was trying to convince his fretting brother that he was just fine.

- _Especially when it came to Fullmetal._ The Colonel frowned and looked away.

He barely even had time to ponder over the thought before the group jumped to the sound of an explosion. Hawkeye immediately stood up and looked over at Mustang- who stood quietly- listening. _That came from the building next to us._

The others seemed to come to the same conclusion seeing since Havoc moved Ed out of view of the window as the others trained their guns- ready to shoot.

"Lieutenant."

Hawkeye turned, "sir?"

"Go ahead of us and wait outside with a vehicle ready." The Colonel ordered.

Hawkeye nodded, "Yes sir, be ready in five minutes." she said then rushed off.

"Alphonse, cover me." Havoc said as he moved in to pick up Edward- knowing full well that a bullet could not hurt the metal giant. Al quickly nodded and moved to shield Havoc from the window as the Second Lieutenant picked up the young blonde. "Damn, you're heavy!" Havoc grunted as he lifted him up.

"It's the auto mail, and I can walk on my own!" Ed snapped, not being a fan of being treated like a child.

"Doctor says otherwise Chief."

"Last time I checked the doctor was the bad guy." Ed stated then looked away mumbling, "Add that to the list of reasons why I hate hospitals."

"Most of them aren't bad- you just have bad luck Chief." Havoc said, slightly agreeing with the young alchemist, "Even if he was a nutcase... You're still not fully healed-"

"I'm-"

"Don't argue Fullmetal." The Colonel interrupted, and Ed scowled over at him- but was quiet.

"Move out, but keep an eye out. There might be more out there." Mustang ordered and they silently started to move towards the exit. His team nodded and followed after the Colonel- moving after him with their guard up.

...FMA...

Hawkeye stood next to the car as the Colonel and the rest of his team rushed out of the dorms, sitting Ed in the back seat and closing the door quickly.

Mustang peeked over to the building next to the dorms, it was in ruins- leaving a pile of rubble. Hawkeye noticed his stare and spoke up. "Major Armstrong made it out of the wreckage with only a few scrapes." She reported as the Colonel walked over to the passenger's side.

Mustang silently nodded- it didn't really surprise him, he was fairly sure the Major could take a mountain falling on him- after all who was his sister...

He peeked over at Fullmetal, who was also staring at the wreckage. Then he got into the passenger's seat- seeing that his Lieutenant was already ready to go. "Head back to Eastern Command." He ordered

"Right away sir."

...FMA...

Ed scowled, trying to hide his bright red face as he had to be carried through Eastern Command. Soldiers stared at him, whispering to each other- but not speaking loud enough for their words to make sense as Mustang's team passed them in the halls and into the Colonel's office- where they sat Ed on the couch. "Just sit back and relax Chief." Havoc said as he stood up.

Ed peeked over and noticed that both Windows were closed with their windows drawn shut. He looked around and noticed that the couch had also been moved.

 _Well, this guy was willing to attack the military dorms, I guess this place wouldn't be that much different._ Ed thought with a scowl. _Except that it's a military base._

A knock at the door startled the team and they all tensed up as Hawkeye walked over to answer it. Hand clearly ready to draw her him in a flash of need be.

She opened it and immediately saluted as the Fuhrer stood in the doorway with Major Armstrong standing behind him. The Fuhrer nodded and stepped inside- the Major following suit, and closing the door behind him.

The Fuhrer looked over at Fullmetal and smiled. "I'm glad to see that you are alright Fullmetal. However, I need to ask you some questions." Ed tensed up, but nodded. "On your last mission did you meet anyone suspicious?"

Ed frowned. "I already told the Colonel about the guy at the train station."

"I am aware, I read it in the Colonel's report." The Fuhrer said, "What I want to know is if you spoke to anyone?"

"The town mayor was trying to start some weird cult, nothing out of the ordinary." Ed said as he wracked his brain trying to think of anyone who stood out. But it had been a normal job- with normal people... Minus the guy at the train station. "No, it was normal. He was the only thing that stood out." Ed said then looked up at the Fuhrer. "Why?"

The Major peeked over, catching the Fuhrer's nod of approval. Then he spoke up. "When I entered the building next to the dorms, I believe that I met the leader."

Mustang's head snapped up, "the leader? That means that this a group of people." _There were at least two people involved in the attack on the dorm..._

The Major nodded, "I met Dormage Hultz." he stated, and the room tensed up- except for the Elric Brothers, who peeked over at each other- clearly confused.

Ed peeked over at Mustang, "Am I supposed to know this guy or something?" he asked a scowl.

Hughes was the one to answer, looking over at the young blonde calmly. "Hultz is the leader of a terrorist group from the south that we've been dealing with since before you were born. Currently he is wanted in the murders of several officers."

Ed frowned. "Okay, so what does he have to do with me? I mean out of all the people he could pick..."

"Well, you are pretty famous." Fury spoke up- peeking over at the Fullmetal Alchemist. Not to mention that you're a ki- that you're still young. Hultz must think that you'd be an easy target for him."

Mustang frowned, "Hultz isn't the type of person to look at what's easy, not anymore." The Colonel frowned, "He used to- but lately he's been going after higher ranking officers. And his activities have increased as of late."

Ed peeked over, "So what changed?"

Mustang frowned- thinking for a moment before answering the Fullmetal Alchemist. "A few months back an attack on a factory ended up killing thirteen people, two of them were close to Hultz according to the message he left us. He killed a General only a few days after" he said, "He's been on the top of the watch list ever since."

Breda frowned, "So if this a terrorist group trying to show that they are serious about revenge, why the photos? And why does it match a murder from years ago?"

Fury peeked over, "Maybe to try and make it look like somebody else did it?"

"Unless they try and make it look like we did it, it hardly seems like something that Hultz would normally do." Breda said.

Ed scowled _, could these guys not talk as if I'm already dead?_

Mustang scowled and shifted on his feet. _Go figure, a Hultz and his buddies are stepping up their game and their newest target is Fullmetal._ He peeked over at the young alchemist, clearly able to see the blonde's nervousness- despite his attempt to hide it.

He remembered the photos and he looked away frowning, _why the photos?_

Hughes seemed to either hear his question or wonder that himself, because a moment later he stood up. "Well guessing won't give us any answers." he turned to the Fuhrer and saluted. "I'm going to go question Doctor Perez sir."

"Very well mind if I come along with you?" the Fuhrer asked- which was redundant, since nobody could tell the Fuhrer no.

"Not at all sir." Hughes answered then looked back to Mustang. "I'm going to have a chat with the doctor, see if I can get some answers to our questions. You-" he pointed to Roy, "Keep Edo safe, especially now that there might be more of those creeps out there." he said, despite the real reason being that they all knew what the Colonel was like when one of his subordinates were threatened.

Let's just say that Hughes needed to talk to the doctor before the Flame Alchemist fried him.

Once the door closed behind the Fuhrer and Hughes, Mustang turned to Armstrong, "Hultz, are you sure?"

"He was identical to the photo that was caught of him." Armstrong said as he say down in a chair. "His photo is posted all over Central, I'd recognize him anywhere."

The Colonel scolded then spoke up again, turning to Hawkeye. "Find a photo of him, I'm sure there's at least one photo of him posted somewhere in Eastern Command."

"I think I know where one is, I'll be right back." Hawkeye said then she rushed out of the room. Only to return a moment later with a paper in her hand.

The Colonel quickly took the paper from her and handed it to Edward. Who frowned as he took the paper and looked at it.

It was Hultz- the man was talk with blonde hair that was turning white with age. Ed shivered as he recognized the coat in the picture. "Do you recognize him?" The Colonel asked, noticing the change in Ed's attitude.

"His coat." Ed said as he looked at the photo. "The man at the train station had the same coat."

The Colonel nodded and took back the paper back. A coat wasn't much to go on- but Fullmetal wasn't the type to make comparisons unless he was sure.

And that was all Mustang needed. He sighed and handed the paper back to Hawkeye. Then he smirked down at the young alchemist. "Go figure you'd attract the attention of the most wanted man in the country right now." he teased with a light smirk on his face- hiding the clenching of his gut as he looked down at the nervous blonde.

Ed frowned, but nodded- recognizing that this wasn't Mustang's normal Bastard- teasing. He sounded genuinely concerned- or maybe he was imagining it. The young blonde sat back on the couch.

Mustang watched the young alchemist for a moment. "Get some rest. Technically you should still be in the hospital." he said as he turned and walked back to his desk, in the corner of his eye he spotted Hawkeye giving Ed a blanket and Ed arguing with Havoc that he wasn't injured enough not to be able to move himself in bed- but the Second Lieutenant only snickered and continued what he was doing with a little. "Lighten up kid, it's not every day that we get to baby you."

"I'm not a kid." Ed snapped, "Once this is over remind me to punch you." The blonde said. "With my right hand."

"Nah that sounds painful."

"I'll do it for you." Breda spoke up over his shoulder and Havoc glanced back at him with almost a pleading look.

"Let Edward sleep you two." Hawkeye spoke up and the room went silent, causing Ed to snicker as he laid back- closing his eyes.

Truth be told- he was exhausted.

...FMA...

Hughes walked up to the cell where Perez was staying and looked inside. "You're a real sicko you know. I don't mind pictures- I take them all the time, but shooting then stalking someone? That's sick." he said as he glared at the man in the cell. "Did you stalk him before you shot him too? Or did the bullet decide for you who you guys would stalk?"

Perez peeked over at him, but remained quiet.

The Fuhrer remained out of sight, watching Perez's every move.

Hughes frowned, "I got a kid at home- so stuff like this really ticks me off. So, I'll get straight to the point. I know that you are working for Hultz. What I want to know is why you are targeting the Fullmetal Alchemist."

Perez remained silent so Hughes continued speaking, "Why did you have to drag a kid into this mess?"

Perez laughed, then looked over. "Like you military can talk? What's a kid doing in the military in the first place?"

Hughes frowned, he knew that Edward had a deep reason behind becoming the dog of the military at age twelve, not that he would ever say it to some creep. "Why is Hultz after the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

Perez snickered. "You'll have to find out on your own."

...FMA...

 _Ed stared at the creation they had just made, sweat dripping down his face- but he was shaking._

" _This wasn't supposed to happen." he whimpered as he pushed himself against the wall._

 _The creature looked over at him and took a shaky breath, that might of been it's last. "Edward."_

 _Ed felt a sharp pain in his back and looked back, seeing a car speed away._

 _Was I shot?_

 _Next thing he knew he was lying in bed- looking up at the ceiling of the military dorm. It was far too quiet, wasn't Mustang supposed to be watching him? If nothing else Al was normally with him._

 _And wasn't he supposed to be in the Colonel-Bastard's office?_

 _He frowned and turned his head- seeing Doctor Perez standing next to his bed with a grin, "soon." he said_

 _And Edward screamed._

Ed bolted up with a yell, His breathing was ragged and his body was covered in sweat.

"Fullmetal?"

He looked over as the Colonel knelt down next to him, "Can you hear me?"

Ed nodded, then looked around- clearing his throat. "Where are the others?" he croaked, since his throat was dry.

Mustang noticed this and grabbed the class of water that was left on the table for him. Ed took the glass and dipped down water as the Colonel spoke, "Working in the main part of the office. We figured you needed your rest, and I'm still stuck in babysitting duty." The Colonel answered- his voice flat.

"Hawkeye threatened you guys." Ed translated.

The Colonel snickered, "Yeah she said you needed the light off and there's already enough bullet holes in the walls." he said then sat in the chair. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Ed frowned and took another sip of water. After he swallowed he spoke quietly, "The normal, of that night."

Mustang nodded, he figured he knew what night Ed was talking about and kept quiet because it looked like Ed wanted to say more- and sure enough he did. Which generally surprised the Colonel- but he listened nonetheless.

Ed wasn't really sure why he was talking to the Colonel about his dream, however his mouth seemed to be on auto pilot, and once he was done he peeked over at the Colonel- waiting for him to respond.

The Colonel nodded once again and sat back, it didn't really surprise him that Fullmetal would get nightmares about getting shot- even Mustang still had those.

"Perez is locked away and is never going to see the light of day ever again. He can't hurt you anymore. And I won't let Hultz hurt you." The Colonel kept his voice calm as he spoke, watching the blonde relax little by little.

After a moment, Ed nodded and sat back- taking a deep breath to relax himself. Then he peeked over at Mustang. "Why do you think Hultz is after me?"

"You're a kid in the military-" Ed opened his mouth to argue but Mustang put up his hands, defending himself with, "I'm just saying from his point of view." He said and Ed sat back. "In his eyes a kid is an easy target."

"He sounds like a scum." Ed muttered.

"For a terrorist, he used to be tolerable- at least compared to the rest, only a few years ago he mainly kept to vandalism, then out of nowhere he started killing off officers." Mustang said and looked away, "Back then- out of all the terrorist groups out there he was honestly the last person I'd expect to go after you." Ed frowned. "But now he is a dangerous terrorist and we will take him out before he can do anymore harm to you or anyone else." Mustang said as he stood up. "Try to get some rest."

Ed nodded and laid back down

...FMA...

Mustang peeked over at the sleeping alchemist on the couch with a frown, watching as the blonde mumbled something in his sleep and shift a little. Then the Colonel looked down at the file in his hands, staring at the photo of Hultz.

" _Don't do it Mustang!"_

" _These are orders Hultz, we don't have a choice!"_

Mustang sat back in his seat as the past glazed over his eyes. "Dammit." he mumbled and closed the file.

 _Don't tell me that this is from back then?_ The Colonel scowled and looked back over at the older Elric brother.

 _But why Fullmetal?_

Ed started to toss and turn in his sleep once again and he sighed, getting back up to make sure that he wasn't having another nightmare. However, as he approached Ed seemed to settle down once more, mumbling something in his sleep again and then relaxing once more.

Mustang watched him for a moment then sighed and sat back down, looking over at the closed curtains.

 _Dammit Hultz, I don't know what you want- but I'm not going to let you hurt anyone else..._

There was a knock on the door and Mustang peeked up, ready to snap as the door creaked open and Hughes stepped inside.

"Hughes."

Hughes peeked over at the sleeping Edward and walked over to Mustang's desk, pulling up a chair. "We'll have to be quiet."

"I wouldn't worry about it." Mustang said, "He's out like a light."

Hughes peeked over at Edward, a worried frown evident in his face. "Well, he still is healing." he mumbled then turned back to Mustang. "Well Roy I do have some good news."

"Some is better than we've had so far." Mustang retorted.

"I'm fairly sure that we can stop worrying about the creepy photos." Hughes said and Mustang peeked up. "When I mentioned it to Perez he seemed pretty happy to talk about his hobby. I got the names of three more victims. Apparently Hultz would let him keep doing what he wanted as long as it was the target Hultz assigned."

"So how many targets are we talking about here- besides Fullmetal?" Mustang frowned, "Anything else about Hultz?"

Hughes sighed and shook his head, "He wouldn't peep, I don't even think he realized what he said about him earlier." Hughes frowned, "Hultz has his men on a pretty tight leash." He peeked over at Mustang, "The Fuhrer is heading back to Central for now- you want to take a crack at Perez?"

Mustang smirked. "With pleasure."

Hughes smiled and started cleaning his glasses, in the morning Mustang would be able to get Hawkeye to stay with Edward while he went to question Perez.

And something told him that tomorrow they would get the information they needed.

 **...FMA...**

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 **And chapter 5!**

 **Feel free to review!**

 **No flames plz!**

 **'Til next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Finally, chapter six!**

 **Sorry for the long wait- life can be a pain in the butt.**

 **But finally, chapter six is out! (insert stupid little dance here)**

 **I'm planning on having only one chapter after this one ending this story but I have more FMA stories planned out- one of them all I have to do is type it.**

 **Thanks for the reviews from-**

 **-thestaffofra**

 **(I'm glad you think it's getting better!)**

 **-Attackoneverything**

 **(yeah sorry for the long wait- I need to get better at that XD)**

 **So anyway, enjoy!  
Feel free to review- but no flames plz!**

 **I do not own anything- all rights go to Hiromu Arakawa!**

 **...FMA...**

Hughes sighed as he parked the car looking over at the jailhouse- something told him that he would be spending a while here. That meant that he would have to wait to see his wife and daughter for a bit- but Edward was the one in trouble- and for that kid he was willing to help.

Next to him Roy was silent- he had been the whole ride. In a way, it surprised him that the Colonel was acting this way- but in another, there was no surprise. The Colonel was always the type to take his subordinates being hurt seriously- mainly due to his promise during Ishbal. However, he was also aware that Ed was special to the Colonel- even if the two of them always bickered. It was more a friendly rivalry.

So in that sense it didn't surprise the over doting father that the mighty Flame Alchemist would be acting this way- especially since the Colonel had been right there when Ed was shot- and almost killed.

Hughes pushed up his glasses and got out of the car- not even realizing when Roy had already gotten out and was waiting for him. He shut the door and let out another annoyed sigh walking the Colonel towards the prison. "Now remember- no killing, that won't help us get any more information out of him." The Major spoke.

"I won't make any promises." Mustang spoke blandly.

Hughes peeked back and sighed shrugging- knowing full well that was going to be the best answer he was going to get out of the pissed off Flame Alchemist. "Alright- don't say that I didn't warn you-"

"You were never here." Roy spoke.

"Sounds good to me." Hughes said as he opened the door to the building and led the Flame Alchemist in. He waved at the guard and walked Mustang up to the cells where he stepped to the side and let the Colonel walk in alone.

The Major let out a sigh as he sat down on the bench- almost waiting for the sound of the explosion. Normally not something he would do- he glared over in the direction that Perez was in- remembering when he got the terrifying call.

-but...

He looked away, he would probably do the same thing if he were the Flame Alchemist- or any alchemist at that matter.

...FMA...

Mustang stepped up to the cell and looked inside. Perez sat in his cell looking over at the Flame Alchemist. "Hello Roy Mustang."

Mustang scowled, "Cut the crap, why is Hultz after Fullmetal?"

"How is Edward by the way? Is he getting enough rest?"

"What does Hultz want with him?"

Perez peeked over at the Flame Alchemist with no fear in his eyes as he smirked, "I hope Edward is getting plenty of rest, he going to need it once Hultz gets his hands on him."

Mustang kept quiet as he slipped on his glove- when he did speak his voice was quiet, but stern. "Tell me something, Perez." he glared at the doctor, "Were you the one who shot Edward?"

"Using his real name now Colonel?' Perez snickered. "You look angry, it's a different look than what you had that day."

Mustang frowned.

"I remember it clearly. You were pretty fast; the bullet had just hit him and you threw yourself in front of him. If I had shot again you'd be a dead man." Perez said as he smirked, "I wish I had been able to stay around long enough to see the look on your face when you saw your precious subordinate bleeding to death in your arms."

Mustang tensed up, every part of his body was screaming at him to snap and burn the creep to ashes.

 _If I do that I won't be able to find Hultz and stop him from whatever he is planning._

That was the only thing keeping him from snapping.

"But the look in you had on your face in the hospital made up for it. You should be grateful, it would have been easy to kill Edward during the surgery, after all, he was already dying- not all surgeries are successful." Perez said, "Not to mention all the times I could have finished him off while he was under."

"So, why didn't you?" Mustang kept his voice calm, despite wanting to fry the guy.

"It was Hultz, he wanted to draw things out."

"Where is Hultz?"

"You'll find out soon enough Colonel, so just try and be patient." Perez said, "Oh and tell Edward I said hi, and to rest up." Perez snickered, "As for Hultz, you'll be seeing him soon."

Mustang glared and turned towards Perez, "Hultz won't ever get close enough to lay a hand on Fullmetal-"

Perez laughed loudly this time. "He already is."

Mustang's eyes went wide as he whirled around and rushed out of the room and past Hughes. "Does anyone have eyes on Fullmetal?"

"Your entire team." Hughes frowned and stood up- following the Colonel. "What's the matter?"

"Perez seems certain that Hultz is here." Mustang said as they walked out of the jail house and up to his car, "Call Hawkeye, and tell her that Edward isn't to leave their sight for a second." Mustang got in and less than a second later Hughes got in with the phone up to his ear.

As soon as the door was shut the Colonel took off- driving as fast as he could towards Eastern Command. "Roy."

Mustang peeked over at Hughes for a moment. "Ed will be fine- he with your team right now."

...FMA...

Once Hawkeye hung up the phone, "That was orders from the Colonel- Edward is not to leave our sight for an instant." Hawkeye spoke and Ed peeked over.

Havoc frowned and looked over at the Lieutenant, "Well that's an obvious." He said, "Hultz is still out there."

Fury looked up and spoke, "Was the Colonel able to get anything off the Doctor?"

"Perez said that Hultz is in the area." Hawkeye stated.

Breda frowned and peeked over at Ed, "He's probably waiting for us to slip up so he can swoop right in and take him."

 _Like I'd just sit here and let that bastard take me._ Ed thought with a scowl as he sat back- then he looked over at Al, who had sat down on the chair next to the couch. After a moment, Al peeked over at his older brother, "Are you going to be alright brother?"

Ed grinned, "I'll be fine- there's nothing to worry about."

A knock at the door startled the team and Hawkeye drew her gun once again as she approached the door, slowly opening it and looking down at the soldier saluting her. "What is it Sergeant?"

"Uh- we received this at the gate." The soldier said as he nervously holds out an envelope. Hawkeye stared at the envelope and she calmly took the envelope, Ed frowned as he was able to see the sweat on the back of her neck. "Very well- inform the Colonel when he arrives."

The soldier saluted and rushed off- then Hawkeye closed the door. Ed eyed the envelope- recognizing it immediately. "I thought that Perez was the one who was sending those photos?"

Havoc sat up quickly, "Wait- another set of photos?"

Hawkeye nodded, "So it would seem." She said and placed the envelope on the Colonel's desk. Not even a moment later the Colonel himself barged in. Hawkeye peeked over, "It's on your desk Colonel."

Mustang nodded and picked up the envelope and opened it up, frowning as he saw a photo of Ed being put into the car- it had been after Perez had been arrested. But the photo was from farther away than Perez had been getting.

 _Is this Hultz trying to tell us something?_ Mustang frowned then looked over at Ed- who looked somewhat nervous. "It from when you were getting in the car- he was pretty far back." He told the blonde- who looked relieved that Mustang was willing to tell him. He nodded and sat back- resting once more.

The Colonel frowned and set down the photos, "We'll have to keep a sharper eye out. Hultz is in the area and he is crafty, we can't slip up once."

The team nodded and Ed frowned and looked around, noticing someone was missing. "Where's Al?"

The group went pale.

And not even a second later everybody moved, Havoc rushing out of the room and Hawkeye picked up the phone in the office and Ed's eyes went wide and not even a second passed before he tried pushing himself up.

"Fullmetal lay back down- that's an order." Mustang snapped, as he picked up the phone. "If you see a man in a suit of armor tell him to get back to my office as soon as possible-" He peeked over at the blonde-haired teen who was still sitting down on the couch by some miracle.

The Colonel hung up the phone and turned to Fury, "Head out and scout around the city, but don't make a scene. The last thing we want is to draw attention to Alphonse."

Fury nodded and rushed out of the room, quickly adjusting into a speed walk as he came into view of other soldiers. The young sergeant sped his walk a bit more.

 _The Colonel is worried, is it to do with Hultz?_ Fury frowned to himself as he walked out of the headquarters. _Hultz would be insane to attack Edward-kun in Eastern Command,_ Fury peeked back at the large building.

 _Then again, Hultz is insane._

...FMA...

Alphonse walked down the street being mindful of the other people around him.

People stared at the armored giant, but he ignored them- since he was already used to it.

The suit of armor stopped and looked around, examining the crowd. Then he continued walking and stepped out of the more populated area, seemingly unknowing of the man that was following him at least ten yards back. The man had a good up to hide his identity,

Al stepped into an alleyway and walked forward a few paces before stopping and staring ahead, listening to the footsteps stop behind him.

"If I didn't know any better I would say that you wanted to be found boy," a rough voice spoke behind him. "Do you think you're safe just because you're covered in that armor? That would be a huge mistake."

Al turned, facing the hooded man behind him, "Are you Hultz?"

"And what if I am boy?"

"Why are you after my brother?"

The man was silent for a moment before speaking in a rough voice, '"Colonel Roy Mustang has committed many crimes. It's time that he atones for his sins."

Al clenched his metal fists. "So, you shot my brother?" he asked, anger clearly radiating off his body- despite his body being unable to show emotions. "My brother has nothing to do with whatever grudge you hold against the Colonel!"

The man laughed, "You act surprised. I guess the Colonel never told you or your brother the risks of joining the military." the man said, "Death is a part of the job, you won't be able to protect your big brother forever. He is going to die, or much worse."

Al glared at the man (or at least wanted to). "I won't stop trying. He's already given up so much for me. I won't let a creep like you near him!" Al turned all the way around, transmutation circle drawn on the wall and attacked. Throwing columns of stone at the man.

The man easily managed to dodge the columns. "Not that it matters anymore."

"What do you mean by that?"

"The best way to draw out a rat is to destroy the nest is it not?" the man said and Al could see the smirk under the man's hood.

Then Al jumped to the sound of an explosion and ran out of the alley- running past the man and stared in shock at the column of smoke coming from Eastern Command. "Brother!"

"Like I said it no longer matters how hard you try. Your brother is already in our hands and I'm his way to Hultz."

 _So, this man's not Hultz!_

The man chuckled, "once he meets Hultz he won't last too long." The man said, "Although knowing Hultz your brother is going to wish it was quicker."

Al stood silently, staring at Eastern Command. Then he slowly turned, His voice quiet but stern, "Where is Hultz?"

"Like I'm going to-

"You will tell me." Al interrupted as he walked forward and towered over the man, so that he couldn't help but to give a small gulp, "Or I'll make you."

...FMA...

Everything was too quiet, Mustang frowned and looked around at his team- who also seemed to notice that something was up.

Havoc chewed on the end of his unlit cigarette while he looked around for anything that stood out.

Breda and Falman had stopped their game of chess a little while ago and were also looking around, "Ok- anybody else getting a foreboding feeling or is it just me?" Breda asked and nobody replied- nobody needed to.

Ed frowned while lying on the couch. _There's still no sign of Al either._ He scowled and looked around the room, noting how tense the air was.

Then Ed sat up- listening carefully.

Mustang noticed the blonde's sudden movement and frowned, "Fullmetal lay back down- technically you're still supposed to be in the hospit-"

"Do you hear that?"

Mustang frowned and sat up- listening carefully. He did hear something but he couldn't make it out exactly what it was. It almost sounded like beeping-

His eyes widened.

"Colonel!" Hawkeye called out-

Then everything exploded.

...FMA...

Mustang winced as he pushed himself up, he was sore- but other than that he could tell that he was unharmed. _The blast must have been farther away than I thought._ "Is everybody alright?" He called out and got a few mumbles and moans in reply- signaling that they were still alive. He looked back at the destroyed wall behind him, _how the hell did they plant a bomb in here._ He remembered the Sergeant from earlier (the one who had tried to take Ed hostage), "Crap how many people does this guy have on his side?" he cursed as he sat up- then tensed up as he heard Edward's yelling-

Coming from outside.

The Colonel pushed himself up and rushed over to the gaping hole in time to see three men dragging the blonde outside and towards a parked car, dragging the blonde inside as he screamed and struggled. "Fullmetal!" The Colonel yelled as searched for his gloves, finding the ones on his desk torn up he opened one of his drawers and grabbed a spare set, Hawkeye stepped up next to him and fired her gun as the car sped away- attempting to aim for the tires. Mustang slipped on the spares and turned back around just in time to see the car turn around the corner and out of sight.

"Shit."

...FMA...

"Let me go you bastards!" Ed yelled and kicked one of the men that were trying to pin him down. (with his left leg for added measure.) Then he tried twisting away only to be grabbed by another set of hands.

"Stop struggling you damn brat!" one of the men yelled.

"I'm not an idiot!" Ed yelled (like any sane person would stop struggling when they were being kidnapped by a group of psychos) he twisted to the side and was almost able to clap his hands before a pair of strong hands grabbed his wrists and pulled them above his head, keeping his palms apart.

"Whatever you do, don't let this kid clap. That's when his alchemy activates." said a deep voice. And tightened his grip enough to make the blonde yelp in pain.

Ed bit the inside of his cheek and took a deep breath before yelling as loud as he could "Dammit! Let me go!" Ed yelled and have a hard twist to the side to try and pull away from the men.

"Damn, this kid's strong!" One of the men yelled.

"He's in the military- he wouldn't be a weakling- also he's got metal limbs so watch out-" He said as Ed kicked his companion as hard as he could with that said metal limb- hearing the satisfying crack of the bones of one of his attackers the blond smirked and twisted to the side to continue fighting.

Ed felt his gut clench as the car came to a stop, Ed was able to see the top of a warehouse building through his view of the window before the door opened and two big men stood in his way. Ed gulped and yelled- struggling as they reached into grab him- dragging the blonde out of the car. The strong hand pulled the young alchemists hands behind his back and the blonde yelped and he was forced to turn around and was shoved forward- practically picking up the young alchemist.

"Let me go!" Ed yelled as loud as he could, then looked up at the warehouse he was being shoved towards. He twisted as hard as he could to try and run off- but the man yanked him forward, nearly throwing the blonde.

Ed looked back at the building as they approached it-

 _Is that where Hultz is?_

...FMA...

"I've put out an alert on Edward, if anybody sees him that will call." Hawkeye said, knowing full well that the chances of that were low- their only chance at that was if Fullmetal was somehow able to escape for a moment. Which normally wouldn't be impossible- but knowing Hultz he would have done his research on the Fullmetal Alchemist by now. (Who knows how much trouble the young alchemist had gotten into by that point.)

The Colonel nodded, "And the car?"

"I also have an alert out on that, somebody did call in reporting that the vehicle was stolen." Hawkeye peeked over at the Colonel, easily able to sense his frustration.

"I don't like sitting here and waiting, get Perez to talk. I don't care how you do it but I want Hultz's location now-"

"Hughes is working on that now sir." Hawkeye answered- annoyed with the fact that Perez was turning out to be difficult to crack.

The phone rang and Mustang immediately answered, "This is Colonel Roy Mustang."

"There's an outside call coming in from an Edward Elric sir,"

Shock ran through the Colonel and he straightened up- by then it was practically a signal to his team that it was something important- silencing the entire room and they all stared at the Flame Alchemist. _Fullmetal!_ "Put it through." He ordered.

There was a soft click and a moment later Mustang heard the familiar voice of his youngest subordinate. "Colonel?" Edward spoke- he was quiet but was steady.

"Fullmetal, are you alright?"

"Your friend here is bat shit crazy." Edward cursed, yelping a moment after.

"Fullmetal!"

"He'll be fine." said a new voice, "As long as he learns to behave."

The Colonel tensed up as the name rolled off his lips like a curse. "Hultz."

The voice laughed, "Now- now, no need to be so rude Colonel. Thanks to me your little subordinate here is still alive-"

"DON'T CALL ME LITTLE!" Mustang could hear Ed roar in the background- making the Colonel smirk, but his smile faded as he heard a loud slap- followed by the blonde's pained yelp.

"Enough Hultz." The Colonel snapped, by then Mustangs whole team was either listening in or scrambling to find any new leads. "What do you want?"

"Whatever do you mean Roy?" Hultz teased and the Colonel could hear Ed's cursing in the background.

"You damn well know what I mean you bastard. What do you want in exchange for Fullmetal?"

"And here I thought you weren't allowed to make deals with terrorists?" Hultz teased.

"I doubt the Fuhrer will give a damn at this point." Mustang lied, _the Fuhrer seemed to like Fullmetal- however he knew that he would still get in serious trouble for that._ But he kept quiet- keeping up the snarky facade and listened close to anything that would give away their location- or the condition of his youngest subordinate.

Hultz laughed. "Oh, really now? Sounds interesting-" Hultz said and paused- seemingly thinking over it and Mustang practically held his breath. "However, no matter how interesting that may be there is no trade for the young alchemist here. Instead a game."

"A game?"

Hawkeye frowned at the thought of some game with Hultz- but judging by the Colonel's reaction Hultz wasn't after a ransom. _We might not have any other choice if we wish to get Edward back safely._ She realized the fact- however she didn't like the idea nonetheless.

"What kind of a game are you talking about Hultz?"

"It's a simple one," Hultz spoke and the Colonel could hear shuffling as Hultz moved, and faintly in the background he was able to hear a car. "You have three hours. If you can't find me by then you'll be finding your subordinate dead on the street somewhere."

"Don't you-"

"It is time that you paid for your sins Flame Alchemist." Hultz cut in, 'Your three hours starts as soon as I hang up."

"Hultz you bastard- Fullmetal has nothing to do with this- touch him a-" The Colonel cursed as the phone was hung up. He set down the phone and cursed once more.

"What are the demands from Hultz?"

"We have three hours to find him." Mustang said, "Any luck with Perez?"

"None yet." Breda scowled.

The Colonel cursed and slipped on his gloves- making the rest of the team (besides Hawkeye) take a step back. "I'll be back."

"Hughes is questioning Perez now sir-"

"We're running out of time and I'm running out of patience." The Colonel snapped as he started to open the door- but stopped as the phone on his desk rang, Hawkeye immediately picking it up.

Hawkeye nodded, "Patch it through." She said, then looked up at the Colonel as he walked over, "It's Fury,"

The Colonel nodded and took the phone, "Speak."

"I found Alphonse-kun sir." Then he heard the Sergeant squeak with the familiar childlike voice of Al apologizing in the background.

"Colonel?" Al's familiar voice spoke.

"Alphonse- where the hell are you?" The Colonel snapped, the rest of Mustang's team peeked over. "Tell Fury that I said to get your ass over here-"

"I know where my brother is sir." Alphonse cut in and the Colonel stopped as shock ran through him.

...FMA...

"How would you know that?" The Colonel asked through the phone on the telephone booth- unknowing that on the other side Fury was looking around nervously at all the East City civilian staring at him and the seven-foot-tall suit of armor holding onto the beaten beyond recognition terrorist.

Al peeked down at the unconscious terrorist that he had ran into in the alley, "I asked one of his friends and he was kind enough to answer me."

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 **...FMA...**

 **Sorry that took so long- and that it's kinda short, I kinda liked the idea at ending the chapter at that part-**

 **I feel like Alphonse would do something like that if he was angered enough.**

 **For any of you who are waiting for book two of the END series I already have book 2 fully planned out and I just need to get the first couple of chapters typed up so I can get ahead and not panic!**

 **There might be a one shot before book 2 though!**

 **So anyway, there's chapter six!**

 **Feel free to review!**

 **No Flames plz!**

 **Til next time!**


	7. Testing, go back to chapter 6 for new ch

Looks like Fanfiction did it again...

So, to all of my followers out there chapter six is out-

I'm planning on there being one more chapter after this one- hopefully Fanfiction isn't going to be a butt with every one of my chapters. If it does I'll see if I can post in my wattpad as well under the name Icichero7

But hopefully it doesn't come to that.

Thanks for your patience and I hope you enjoy chapter 6! (If you get this)

-Dragneel777


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